A Night Together
by sHiKaMaRu69
Summary: When Shikamaru gets on his third Suna assignement in a month, Temari starts to make her move.


**Shika and Tema**

"Hokage-sama! Suna?! This is the third time I'll be there this month alone!" Shikamaru shouted at the Hokage.

"I know, but the Suna has grown trust on you, ever since you became chuunin." Tsunade replied.

"Hokage-sama, I think Shikamaru-kun is right. We keep sending his team there, over and over again. Maybe we should send another team this time." Shizune said.

Tsunade looked at Shikamaru then to Shizune, "There's a special reason why, I keep sending Shikamaru to Suna, Shizune." She said looking down at her table. She raised her head, there was a smile in her beautiful face, "…it's because, we are sure that Shikamaru is safe in Suna."

Shizune and Shikamaru looked surprised. "Hokage-sama?" Shizune muttered.

Tsunade-sama stood up from her table smiling evilly. "The last time Temari-chan was here, she gave good information. It turns out that the Kazekage and the council of Suna have grown fond of Shikamaru. They say that they value your skill and mind. No shinobi in Suna would dare go against Gaara now, would they?"

Shizune turned to the Hokage-sama, "Tsunade-sama! What if that information is a fake to assassinate Nara-san?"

Tsunade laughed and laughed, "Shizune, can I ask you something. Ould you do something that'll put Genma's life in danger?"

"No."

Shikamaru was dumbfounded in the two's conversation. Still, he knew he was in it because the Hokage didn't take her stare off of him.

"Then do you think, that someone who feels the same way for Shikamaru as you do for Genma, want to hurt him." Tsunade said.

Shizune was stunned. Blood rushed to her cheeks. She understood.

Tsunade's expression changed to a smile, "Besides, Shikamaru, I'm sure you miss Temari."

--/--/--/--/--/

"_Get your team ready. You'll leave first thing in the morning." _He remembered Tsunade's words. Does this mean that the only reason she kept giving Shikamaru Suna missions is to get Temari and him together.

He stopped in front of Emi's house. "Oi, Emi!" Shikamaru shouted. After about a minute a dark haired girl rushed out of the house. Among Shikamaru's team, Emi was his favorite. She was 'non-troublesome' if Shikamaru said it. A plain, silent and fairly skilled kunoichi. "Emi, we'll be on a mission tomorrow. Suna, again. Readyyour things. Meet me tomorrow Konoha's east gate. 4 in the morning, Understood?"

"Yup." Emi replied.

_We've been to Suna so much my students have close friends there._

Even though Shikamaru tried to clear it from his mind, he was also kind of happy to go toSuna. He secretly longs for Temari. Every time the lass was in Konoha, the two of them would watch clouds and stars together on their free time. Haruko (Shika's mom) and Temari have become good acquaintances that she thought Temari her recipe, Shikamaru's favorite, as she says. Truth was, Shikamaru cared about was cheap food that he could go to if anyone asked to be treated.

Shikamaru stopped in front of a fairly bigger house, "Oi, Izumi!"

A blonde girl came rushing out. "Shikamaru-san, Nee-san is out training with Juro. I don't know where they went."

Shikamaru bent down, "I think I do. _Arigato-gozaimasu, _Kaoru." He said as he left. Kaoru was Izumi's younger sister, just as troublesome as Izumi.

Shikamaru remembered the last time he was in Suna. Tsunade assigned him to escort a woman with an important document. They were actually attacked on their way. Shikamaru took them on, but let the genin take care of some. He had plenty wounds when they arrived in Suna.

Temari fussed over him so much that you'd think they were married.

Shikamaru liked Temari but he didn't want to. He believed that Temari was the most troublesome woman he had met and will ever meet. He blamed his genes. According to Shikato, Nara men are attracted to troublesome women. But that was only the case because of one peculiar part, women only became impossibly troublesome when you have grown attracted to them.

Shikamaru found himself in front of Ichiraku ramen. It was lunchtime, this was most likely to be the place Juro'd eat. Sure enough, Juro was sitting there eating ramen, with four empty bowls beside him. Beside him was a chestnut haird girl that kept scolding him about eating, Izumi.

"Izumi, Juro, I need to talk you." Shikamaru said.

The boy faced him holding the bowl of ramen, slurping.

"Shikamaru-sensei, tell him to stop, before he throws up again." Izumi said concerningly.

Juro was a boy that resembled Naruto amazingly, from the blonde hair to the stupid smile.. Juro was an exceptional shinobi who was amazing at taijutsu. Izumi though, was a regular shinobi, skilled, yet no speciality. She also was a coward and cared too much about others. She was troublesome too because of her nagging.

"Juro, stop eating, you'll get sick. You don't want to, we'll be going to Suna tomorrow. You don't want to miss seeing Kikiyo , do you?" Shikamaru said.

Juro spat out the ramen and looked as if the ramen suddenly turned to a poison.

"Really, Shikamaru-sensei?" Izumi's eyes flashed.

"Really. Good bye then. Meet me tomorrow East gate, 4 in the morning."

Shikamaru went to the roof of the Ninja Academy, it was his cloud watching spot. _Temari is beautiful. _He thought. _But, she's still troublesome_. He sighed. Shikamaru looked at the clouds. He dozed off.

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

"Shikamaru-sensei! You're late." Izumi shouted.

Shikamaru's three genin were already at the exit. "Sorry. Had to pick up the documents!"

Shikamaru left with his team. It would be three days before they reach Suna.

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

Three days had passed. Shikamaru and his team were at Suna's only entrance. The sand shinobi let them pass through. Shikamaru was a familiar face to them.

"Welcome, _sensei._" Temari mocked him.

"I can't believe you're the first face I saw. This is going to be a pain." Shikamaru said. The retort landed him with a sharp blow on the gut.

"Shika and Tema, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G…" His genin strated chanting.

Shikamaru turned to them, "Fine, go. But be back before sunset."

"Be back where?" Izumi asked.

Shikamaru just remembered they have no place to stay yet.

"You can stay with me again. If you aren't fed up of my house?" Temari said smiling to Shikamaru's genin.

The genin nodded their heads.

"Thanks, Temari." Shika said.

Izumi, Emi and Juro went off.

"So," Temari said etching herself to Shikamaru. "What you gonna do now?"

Shikamaru started sweating. "I don't know. I have no appointment with Kazekage-sama. I think I have the day off."

"Then come on. I found another great cloud-slash-star watching spot." Temari said as he pulled Shikamaru's hand. Ever since they started getting Suna missions, Temari would show Shikamaru cloud-slash-star watching spots. They would use them when they had nothing to do.

Temari brought him to a rooftop of a building. It was cool and the skycould be seen clearly. Temari was right it was a good spot. Shikamaru took off his backpack and vest. He lay down on the cool concrete with his hands cushioning his head. Temari followed him and she watched the drifting clouds with him. Soon, both shinobi were sound asleep under the clear sky.

Shikamru was awakened by something wet drop on his forehead. He was paralyzed at what he saw. Beside him, fast asleep, was Temari. No not beside him, probably hugging him. Temari's head was resting on his chest, while her right hand was placed above his sternum. He didn't know what to do, he wanted to wake her up, but something inside him seemed to like it.

A drop landed on Temari's head. She opened her eyes. Shikamaru noticed he prepared for pain. But nothing.

"Good afternoon, Shika-kun." She said smiling at him.

It might have been a great moment for them that ight have ended in a kiss except that…

Boom!

Thunder and lightning appeared. The shinobi did not move. The rain fell and they had to.

Temari was laughing and seemed to have fun in the rain. Suna don't have usual rains, but when they do. It was a good rain. Temari took off the ribbons that put her hair to four ponytails. Her blonde hair dropped to her shoulders elegantly. She took off her purple kimono leaving only the white underneath. She looked extremely beautiful as she splashed and jumped the rain.

Shikamaru was dumbfounded. It was enough for him just to witness Temari's beauty.

"Shika-kun? What are you looking at? Are you okay?" Temari asked the stunned Shikamaru.

Shikamaru went back to earth, "Nothing. I'm fine."

Temari went near him. Shikamaru trembled as she came closer. She pulled Shikamaru out of the shade into the rain. Shikamaru had no choice but to join.

Shikamaru was not the social; type to play in such inferior typed entertainment. He stopped playing games with other children when he was a kid for an unknown reason.

But, this time, under the rain, with Temari. It seemed that the fun Shikamaru emerged.

Their eyes met somehow. They stopped laughing and splashing. Shikamru held Temari in his harms. Temari went near him. Offering her lips, her eyes closed. Shikamru neared his face to hers. They were a few centimeters from each other…

Click.

They looked ton where the sound was from. Izumi was carrying a camera, and Juro, mi and some Sand shinobi were there to. The rain didn't stop but they protected the camera from the rain.

"Ino-chan is going to love this!" Juro shouted as they ran off.

Shikamaru wanted to chase after them, but he didn't want to leave Temari alone.

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

They went back to the shade. When the rain stopped Shikamaru offered his vest to Temari, who obliged. They walked back to Temari's apartment where Izumi, Juro and Emi were preparing beddings.

"Smoochy, smoochy…" Juro kept joking around. The two girls rolled in enjoyment.

Temari walked to them and said, "Haha! That's so funny that, if you don't stop you won't be eating dinner."

The three genin stopped. They heard stories about the sand kunoichi Temari, from their sensei, scary, horrifying stories.

Shikamaru helped Temari with the food while the genin washed up.

"Shikamaru, do you ever miss me…" Temari suddenly said while she was peeling a carrot, "I mean, do you think of me, when you're in Konoha?"

Shikamaru was perplexed. She was amazingly straight-forward, "Well, sometimes. I mean without you there it's kind of lonely. Ino's my only company and she just comes when she's hungry."

Temari's face was reeder that the tomatoes Shikamaru was slaughtering. "Really? Because, I, uhm, kinda really, you know miss you… sometimes…"

Shikamaru's tomatoes were getting destroyed before, but now, they were horrifying. Temari's carrots and potatoes were quartered after they were peeled.

They stayed silent for a while, until they cooked the dinner actually.

"Shikamaru-sensei, Temari-chan, I know it's rude to complain but, your food tastes okay but looks horrific!" Izumi said. The two genin nodded in approval.

"Shikamaru-sensei, Ino-san is going to kick your butt when he realizes you flirting with other girls." Emi said.

"I liked you better when you when were quiet."

Temari dropped her silverware at Emi's retort. "Emi, is Shikamaru-kun and Ino-chan, dating?"

"I don't know. They go out a lot a lunch. And I saw Ino-chan kiss Shikamaru-sensei more than a few times." The girl said innocently.

"Oh." Temari sighed.

A clear tear dropped from her eyes.

Shikamaru realized what must have happened, what Temari must have thought.

They were quiet the rest of the meal, the older ones at least.

Temari put her dishes to the kitchen sink and ran to the bathroom. The children and Shikamaru followed after.

He took the liberty of washing the dishes.

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

The genin slept quite early on their sensei's orders.

Temari did not go out of the bathroom since. Shikamaru was worried. He could eavesdropped on the bathroom since he had the chance to make sure Temari was alright.

The flowing water of the shower was loud, but it could only but muffle her sobs and cries. Shikamaru was down as well. What Emi said was true and he felt bad at what Temari must be feeling.

Then silence. Shikamaru ignored it. But she still didn't come out. Something was rising inside Shikamaru, it was worry. 'What if Temari killed herself or something?' it raced in his mind.

The scene didn't change for a few a minutes. Shikamaru could hear Temari's soft sobs again. He got a little comfortable. 'At least I know she's alive.'

"Ahh!" the sound came from inside the bathroom. A loud thud.

Shikamaru got up to his feet and knocked the door down. "Temari!"

Shikamaru's blood rose to his cheeks.

Temari was there sitting on the floor stroking her behind, completely naked.

The tension was really high. Shikamaru couldn't move a single muscle in his body. Temari was to shocked to move ar say anything. The two shinobi looked at each other.

"Shikamaru-sensei! You're a pervert!" Emi screamed from behind Shikamaru.

Shikamaru and Temari went back to earth. They just realized the situation: Two fourteen year-old shinobi looking at each other while the other one was naked in the bathroom, with three young genin in the same house.

Shikamaru looked away, "Sorry." He closed the door and went to the room Temari'd let him sleep in whenever they were in Suna.

Inside the bathroom though, a sweet, happy, yet subtle smile appeared on the blonde kunoichi's face.

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

Shikamaru banged his fist against the wall of the room. It was unusual for Shikamaru to be troubled like this by something as trivial as what happened.

'I'm so stupid!' he shouted to himself.

Shikamaru jumped on to the bed. 'I can't believe I stared at her nude body. She must be thinking I'm a pervert! Damn! I'm acting like Naruto and Jiraiya-sama!'

'Why am I thinking this? Why should I care what she thinks?' he sighed inside to calm himself. 'I never cared what others thought before. Why is it like this? What's happening to me?'

Shikamaru couldn't shake Temari's image, her beautiful and perfect image, from his mind.

'She really is beautiful.' He thought. 'Do I love her?' he thought as he covered his face with his hands. 'She didn't have a single wound or blemish on her legs, thighs, breasts wherever.' As he remembered Temari's naked image.

Shikamaru sat up. He took out a gray kimono from his backpack. 'Maybe I can think better under the hot water.' He walked to the bathroom door. The doorknob's lock was the only thing broken.

The hot water was refreshing and clearing.

'What is it with her? She's nothing more than a troublesome woman who likes to snoop around my business. What is it with her? She's just like Ino, but different, a good different.'

He remembered what Shikato told him two years ago, "Nara men are known to be attracted to troublesome women."

'Is that true? If I like her, how come I hate her so much?!' he kept running his mind. 'But, why is it that whenever she's around I feel happy, I feel irritated though, but it's as if, when she's there it's like I can talk, I can smile, I can laugh. She's the only one that I can really talk to.'—

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

Shikamaru walked out of the bathroom. He wore the gray kimono with his ninja clothes folded and carried around his arms. Juro, Emi and Izumi were lying inside their sleeping bags. Temari had only one spare room.

Shikamaru stoope in front of Temari's door. He wanted to talk to her but, he didn't want to sound stupid.

He raise his arm. His clenched fist was only a fewe inches from the wooden surface.

Sweat dripped down from his forehead. His heart raced. Every muscle inside of him tightened.

'Tock.' It sounded as his fist made contact.

There was no answer. 'Did she hear it?' he thought.

"Shi-shi-kmaru?"

The door opened as he thought. Temari stood from the other side. She wore a golden silk night dress that showed her beautiful limbs and shoulders. The four ponytails that tied up her enchanting yellow hair, was gone. Her locks were let down, it rested on her bare shoulders.

"Uhm, T-te-temari." Shikamaru stuttered. "I, uhm, I just wanted to say sorry, about what happened."

Temari looked surprised. She walked away from the boy and sat at the edge of her bed, beside her seventy pound fan.

"Don't worry, Shikamaru." She said as her eyes glared at her feet. "I am shinobi, before I am woman."

Shikamaru was dumbfounded. He never heard a girl say that before. "O-oh, I'll go then."

"Shikamaru wait."

Shikamaru walked back into the room.

"Uhm, could you please close the door behind you."

Shikamaru's heartbeat went up again. But, he did as he was told.

"Shikamaru, about what Emi said…"

"Ino's one of my friends." Shikamaru replied before she could finish.

Temari's face seems to have turned even tenser.

"She's just as troublesome as you are. But, she can do it no problem because our dads are close friends.

Temari looked even more upset. "Then, you two must be very close then? Are you two, engaged?"

Shikamaru looked at Temari in disbelief. "No."

Temari seemed to relax a bit.

Shikamaru sat beside her. The light was behind them. Their shadows were in front of them, only a few centimeters apart.

Temari fumbled with her fingers, it reminded Shikamaru of Hinata, "But, uhm, do you, you know, like her? More than friends?"

The shinobi etched himself to Temari's side.

He sighed heavily.

"If there's one kunoichi I'd think to be more than a friend…" Shikamaru started off, looking at Temari's feet.

Temari turned to face Shikamaru. Her entire face was redder that Juro's after eating twenty bowls of hot and spicy flavored ramen.

Shikmaru raised his head and looked at Temari. "…If there's one person I'd want to be with, Temari…"

She neared her face to listen better. He touched her white hand.

"It would be you."

Temari smiled. It wasn't the grin Shikamaru saw in their fight during the exam, not the one at the fight with the sound shinobi, not even the smile he'd see on her every so often when she messed with him or danced in the rain. This was different. He felt the warmth, the happiness she felt.

Shikamru placed his hand on her cheek.

Their faces came near each other.

Their lips met.

Shikamaru stroked her beautiful yellow hair; the scent of flowers came from it.

He made her lie on the bed. Temari was weak. The strength she has when they first met was gone, she was no longer shinobi she was a girl, with the boy he liked.

--/--/--/--/--/--/--/--/

The next morning, Shikamaru's genin witnessed something that haunt them their whole lives.

Their sensei and a shinobi from Suna, lying on one bed hugging each other, with only a blanket to cover their bodies.

"We never speak of this, ever gain." Izumi said.

Juro and Emi nodded.


End file.
